This Would Be Paradise (Book 3)

Chapter 2

The doors were shut behind me, Josh on the other side giving me a sarcastic wave through the small window. I returned the gesture with my middle finger. The two guards each stood in front of a door, barely looking at me. They were dressed in black body armor that had the word 'SWAT' colored over, but you could still read the writing.

"So what now?" I asked.

"You find a spot and then sit," said the male guard on the left.

"Until...?" I made a rolling motion with my finger.

"Until we send you back to your cell," said the male guard on the right.

I felt like Alice trying to get information out of Tweedledee and Tweedledum. I laughed and they cast me a sharp look that said, "Don't try anything." This former mental hospital was going to turn me mental. With a sigh, I gave up trying to get anything from the two idiots and turned to face the cafeteria once again. Everyone was dressed in the same white shirt and blue pajama pants as the ones I was currently wearing. Someone caught a sale at mental-patients-attire-R-US. I should stop cracking jokes. I needed to find a way out of here.

My eyes landed on the windows as I scanned my surroundings. I dashed over to them to find bars soldered onto the outside frame. This was starting to look more like a prison, not a hospital. Even if I smashed the glass, the bars would stop me from escaping. The windows on the other side of the room had been outfitted with the same security measures. Except for one of the smaller side windows; it was boarded up.

I could tell we were on the main floor. Green bushes and shrubs reached towards the bottom of the windows like curious fingers wiggling in the light breeze. Toward the back of the cafeteria was the kitchen, also guarded by one lone female guard. This isn't where I'd be escaping from-but I would be escaping.

"A word of advice, don't try anything on your first day," said a guy off to my left. He had been watching me size up the joint from his spot at one of the bolted town, stainless steel tables.

"Maybe I was just admiring the lovely weather," I said.

"No one admires anything here. You had that look in your eye-we all did when we first got locked up." His eyes flashed to the guarded front doors.

I sat across the table from him in an uncomfortable steel chair-also bolted to the ground.

"How long have you been here?" I asked.

"Not a hundred percent sure. I didn't thing to start marking the days until a while into my stay, but I'd say a month and a half," he answered.

His smooth tan skin, black hair and build, made me think he was of Spanish decent. From his sitting position I couldn't gauge his height very well, but there was no way he was over six feet tall, maybe 5 '10. He also looked younger than me by a couple of years. He had to be twenty at most.

"Do you know how long this all has been going on?"

He itched at his cheek. "Not sure. Some of the longer term residents say they've been here for three months."

Well, at least they had long term people.

"I'm Bailey, by the way."

"Leo."

"So, Leo, what can you tell me about this place?" I leaned over the table toward him.

He let out a nervous laugh. "I don't know about any secret air ducts that can be used for a daring escape if that's what you're looking for." His eyes glanced toward the front doors again.

"You looking for someone?" I twisted around to peer at the guards.

"One of the ladies, Rose, was taken for testing today and they haven't brought her back yet."